John Dunmore

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John Dunmore CMNZ, Légion d'honneur, Palmes académiques, HonDLitt (born 1923) is a prominent New Zealand academic, historian, author, playwright, and publisher.

Contents 1 Career 2 Honors 3 Books 3.1 Biographies 3.2 Translated and edited journals of explorers 3.3 Other historical works 3.4 Fiction 3.5 Other 4 External links 5 Notes

[edit] Career

John Dunmore was born in Trouville-sur-Mer, France, lived in Jersey under German Occupation during World War II, and then in England, where he received a BA from the University of London. He emigrated to New Zealand in 1950. He completed a PhD under historian J C Beaglehole at Victoria University of Wellington in 1962, studying the French contribution to the exploration of the Pacific Ocean in the 18th century. He was Professor of French, Head of the Department of Modern Languages, and Dean of Humanities at Massey University, from which he retired in 1985.^[1]
Dunmore's main field of history is the exploration of the Pacific, particularly by French navigators. He has written two major biographies of La Pérouse, and translated and edited his journals (which he rediscovered after they had been misfiled in the French National Archives).^[2] In addition, he has written biographies and edited the journals of both de Surville and of Bougainville. His biography of de Surville, The fateful voyage of the St. Jean Baptiste, won the Wattie Book of the Year award in 1970.^[3]
His work is highly regarded by scholars as well as by the public:

• "John Dunmore has done more than anyone to bring our attention to the achievements of eighteenth and nineteenth century French explorers of the Pacific"^[4]
• "cette étonnante biographie, élégamment écrite (this stunning and elegantly written biography (of Bougainville))"^[5]
• "The succinct and perceptive evaluation of the voyages and the Anglo-French rivalry is of great use"^[6]

Besides his scholarly work, Dunmore has written a variety of other books, including a series of thrillers under the pseudonym "Jason Calder".^[7] He has produced a book of 18th-century recipes, Mrs Cook's book of recipes for mariners in distant seas. Some of the recipes were derived from the logs of explorers of the day, including stewed albatross, stewed ship's rats, and turtle soup.
He has also written plays,^[8] held office in the Playwrights Association of New Zealand,^[9] and written a history of the association.
Dunmore, in his capacity as professor of French, was for many years president of the New Zealand Federation des Alliances Francaises He established two separate publishing firms, the Dunmore Press (1969-1984) and Heritage Press (1985-2004).^[10] The Dunmore Press, a substantial New Zealand publisher of academic books, eventually became part of the Thomson publishing group, in 2004.^[11]

[edit] Honors

• The New Zealand Government awarded Dunmore the New Zealand Medal in 1990 and appointed him as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2001.^[12]
• The French Government appointed him as a Chevalier dans la Légion d'honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor) in 1976, and an Officier dans l'Ordre des Palmes académiques (Officer of the Academic Palms) in 1986.^[13]
• Massey University awarded him an honorary DLitt degree in 2006.^[14]
• Fellow Pacific scholars honored him with a Festschrift: (2005) in Cropp, Glynnis M; Noel R Watts; Roger D J Collins; K R Howe (eds): Pacific journeys: Essays in honour of John Dunmore. Wellington, New Zealand: Victoria University Press. ISBN 0864735073. 

[edit] Books

This list of books by Dunmore is representative but by no means complete. He has also written many articles, book chapters, reviews, plays and other items. A list of his scholarly writings to 2005 is included in Pacific Journeys at pp. 15-19.

[edit] Biographies

• Dunmore, John (2006). Wild cards: eccentric characters from New Zealand's past. Auckland, New Zealand: New Holland. ISBN 186966132X. 
• Dunmore, John (2002). Mounsieur Baret: First woman around the world 1766-68. Auckland, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708548. 
• Dunmore, John (2006). Where Fate Beckons: The life of Jean-François de la Pérouse. Auckland, New Zealand: Exisle. ISBN 0908988532.  Published also by ABC Books, Sydney, Australia.
• Dunmore, John (2005). Storms and Dreams. Louis de Bougainville: soldier, explorer, statesman. Auckland, New Zealand: Exisle. ISBN 0908988575.  Published also by ABC Books, Sydney, Australia.
• Dunmore, John (1985). Pacific Explorer: The life of Jean-François de la Pérouse, 1741-1788. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0870215191. 
• Dunmore, John; Touchard, M-C (1986). La Pérouse: explorateur du Pacifique (in French). Paris: Payot. ISBN 2228140600.  Translation of Pacific Explorer.
• Dunmore, John (1972). Norman Kirk: A Portrait. Palmerston North, New Zealand: New Zealand Books. ISBN 0900878038. 
• Dunmore, John (1969). The fateful voyage of the St. Jean Baptiste: a true account of M. de Surville’s expedition to New Zealand & the unknown South Seas in the years 1769-70. Christchurch, New Zealand: Pegasus. 

[edit] Translated and edited journals of explorers

• Dunmore, John (2002). The Pacific journal of Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, 1767-1768. London: Hakluyt Society. ISBN 0904180786. 
• Dunmore, John (1994). The journal of Jean-François de Galaup de la Pérouse, 1785-1788, vol. 1. London: Hakluyt Society. ISBN 0904180387. 
• Dunmore, John (1995). The journal of Jean-François de Galaup de la Pérouse, 1785-1788, vol. 2. London: Hakluyt Society. ISBN 0904180387. 
• Dunmore, John (1981). The expedition of the St. Jean-Baptiste to the Pacific, 1769-1770: from journals of Jean de Surville and Guillaume Labé. London: Hakluyt Society. ISBN 0904180115. 

[edit] Other historical works

• Dunmore, John (2001). Playwrights in New Zealand: A short history of the Playwrights Association of New Zealand. Auckland, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708513. 
• Dunmore, John (2000). Chronology of Pacific History. Auckland, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708491. 
• Dunmore, John (1997). Visions & realities: France in the Pacific, 1695-1995. Waikanae, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708416. 
• Dunmore, John (1991). Who’s who in Pacific navigation. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 0824813502. 
• Dunmore, John (1991). Around the shining waters: a history of Featherston County Council. Waikanae, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 090870822X. 
• Dunmore, John; Maurice de Brossard (1985). Le Voyage de Lapérouse (in French). Paris: Imprimerie nationale. ISBN 2110808578 (2 volumes). 
• Dunmore, John (1965). French explorers in the Pacific. Vol 1: The eighteenth century. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 
• Dunmore, John (1969). French explorers in the Pacific. Vol 2: The nineteenth century. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 

[edit] Fiction

"Jason Calder" is a pseudonym for John Dunmore.

• Calder, Jason (1981). Target Margaret Thatcher. London: Hale. ISBN 070919272X. 
• Calder, Jason (1978). The O'Rourke affair. Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press. 
• Calder, Jason (1977). A wreath for the Springboks. Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press. ISBN 090856404X. 
• Calder, Jason (1976). The man who shot Rob Muldoon. Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press. ISBN 0908564104. 
• Dunmore, John (1971). Meurtre à Tahiti (Murder in Tahiti) (in French). Auckland, New Zealand: Longman Paul. ISBN 0582687616. 
• Dunmore, John (1964). Le mystère d'Omboula (The mystery of Omboula) (in French). Hamilton, New Zealand: Paul's Book Arcade. 

[edit] Other

• Dunmore, John (2006). Mrs Cook's book of recipes for mariners in distant seas. Auckland, New Zealand: Exisle. ISBN 0908988648.  Also published by the Australian National Maritime Museum.
• Dunmore, John (2006). La Peyrouse dans l'Isle de Tahiti (La Pérouse in the island of Tahiti), Anonymous (1806) (in French), London: Modern Humanities Research Association. ISBN 0947623728. 
• Dunmore, John (1998). I remember tomorrow: an autobiography. Waikanae, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708440. 
• Dunmore, John (1993). The playwright's workbook: A practical manual to help you craft a better play. Waikanae, New Zealand: Heritage Press. ISBN 0908708300. 
• Dunmore, John (1973). An Anthology of French Scientific Prose (in French and English). London: Hutchinson Educational. ISBN 0091123313. 
• Dunmore, John (1968). Success at university: a practical guide. Christchurch, New Zealand: Whitcombe and Tombs. 

[edit] External links

• Dunmore Press (The site still exists as at December 2006, but appears not to have been maintained since 2004)

[edit] Notes